This invention is related to a device which measures noise to which an individual is exposed.
In a work environment, the accumulated amount of noise or dose, the average noise level and the maximum level of noise to which an individual has been exposed during a work day are important to occupational safety and health of an individual. Currently, industry and governmental agencies such as Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) require accurate measurements and noise data measurements such as the percent of total daily dose allowable for an individual, the average and maximum noise levels of exposure and constant sound level monitoring.
Audio dosimeters are known in the art as shown in Maddox et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,868,857 issued Mar. 4, 1975, Ceci U.S. Pat. No. 4,020,286 issued Apr. 26, 1977 and Sima, Jr., et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,100,810 issued July 18, 1978. Generally, these dosimeters are not as accurate as is required and only provide dose values and are not sufficiently versatile to provide the aforementioned noise data measurements which are currently required.
The audio dosimeter of this invention is a compact and accurate instrument that provides the above data which can be visually displayed or can be fed directly into a computer and recorded to provide accurate records for an individual.